Officials prepare for the burial of birds. (Kundan Yolmo) Residents of Sukna army cantonment and visitors to Madhuban Park and Umrao Singh Lake situated inside the military area will no longer be able to have a glimpse of a major attraction thanks to the outbreak of bird flu. Over 200 ducks, swan and geese, which inhabited these recreational sites, have been culled as the deadly disease was detected just 500m from the cantonment. "It was a sad but unavoidable decision. These birds were a welcome add-on to the locations for young as well as old visitors who used to feed them and take pictures,' said a senior army officer. "We had got to know that chicken in Poinikumari and Sukna villages had started dying from April 27 and that samples had been sent for tests. Many of us had hoped that the results would be negative. But once the confirmation from the Bhopal lab came in, the civil administration approached us and instructed that all the birds within a 10km radius would have to be culled. The culled chickens included the ducks and swans,' the officer added. Over the past two days, around 230 chickens in the lake, besides about 10,000 ones in three villages within the cantonment area, were killed. Army personnel, including three veterinary doctors, assisted the teams from the animal resources development department in the operation. "Military police personnel were also sent with the teams as a precautionary measure to counter any possible resistance from the villagers,' the officer said. Already on alert since the first confirmation of bird flu in north Bengal came in from South Dinajpur in late January, the Trishakti Corps are helping out the civil authorities and have taken several measures as the disease has reached closer home. Excavators were provided to dig 10 pits, each having a depth of 3m and width and breadth of 2m, for burying the birds. Once the dead birds were dumped in the pits, they were burnt with kerosene and sprayed with disinfectant, the officer said. Then, the pits were filled with mud and another layer of disinfectant applied. The culling of poultry birds was completed today in Kurseong and Siliguri sub-divisions. The ARD department staff had culled around 20,900 poultry birds over the last three days.